Feeder dish for traveling animals

ABSTRACT

A pet feeding dish, particularly suited for use when traveling, comprises a frusto-spherical bowl or container supported by two in line pins attached to opposite sides of the container near the open rim. The pins in turn are pivotally held by a box shaped base weighted with sand or other appropriate material in such manner that the container is free to pivot about the axis of the pins. The rim of the container is also provided with an turned-in lip to reduce spilling of liquids contained therein when the feeder is placed on a swaying platform, such as a ship or boat.

United States Patent 1 Buffum 1 July 31, 1973 1 FEEDER DISH FORTRAVELING ANIMALS 22 Filed: May 26,1972

211 Appl. No.: 257,159

8/1950 Jensen 126/24 3/1970 Sleith et al 119/61 Primary Examiner-Hugh R.Chamblee Att0mey-Harris C. Lockwood [57] ABSTRACT A pet feeding dish,particularly suited for use when [52] US. Cl. 119/61 travelin f g,comprises a rusto-spherlcal bowl or con- [51] Int. Cl A011: 5/00 [58]Field of Search 119/61 51 tamer supported by two 1n line pms attached tooppo- 6 site sides of the container near the open rim. The pins in turnare pivotally held by a box shaped base [56] References Cited weightedwith sand or other appropriate material in such manner that thecontalner is free to pivot about UNITED STATES PATENTS the axis of thepins. The rim of the container is also pro- 63l,895 8/1899 Littlefield119/61 vided with an turned-in lip to reduce spilling of liquids i:contained therein when the feeder is placed on a swaywartout...

187,147 2/1877 Jennings 4/169 mg platform such as a shlp or boat 988,7154/1911 Jaeger 119/61 13 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures '1 III l I I\\ I r Z223 t 5 22 5 I7 I 2 32 FEEDER DISH FOR TRAVELING ANIMALS BACKGROUND OFTHE INVENTION The present invention relates to a pet feeding dish thatwill tend to assume a generally horizontal orientation, and therebyreduce spillage of the food or drink contained therein, even when thedish is disposed onv a swaying or otherwise moving platform such as acar, ship or boat.

For many years, pet owners who have traveled with their pets have beenfaced with the problem of feeding their pets in transit. As most suchowners will attest, these feedings are generally an unpleasantexperience for both the owner and pet, primarily because the petsfeeding dish is jostled about and tipped from a normally horizontalorientation, causing the contents of the dish to spill.

In view of the foregoing, it is an object of the present invention toprovide a pet feeding dish that will resist tipping and spilling.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a pet feedingdish whose open top rim will tend to assume a normal horizontalorientation regardless of the orientation of the support on which thedish is placed.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a weighted petfeeding dish having a pivotally supported bowl or container, the latterbeing provided with a turned-in lip for reducing spillage during use.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an inexpensive,durable pet feeding dish particularly suited for use in transit.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a petfeeding dish which is easily disassembled and cleaned between feedings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING These and other objects and advantagesof the present invention will be more readily apparent from thefollowing description, taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of one embodiment of the feeding dishof the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the feeding dish generally taken alongline 2-2 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view of the feeding dish, taken generallyalong line 33 of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring now to the drawing, and particularly toFIGS. 1 and 2, it will be seen that the invention contemplates a feedingdish comprised of bowl or container portion 11, a base portion 12, andmeans (designated generally by reference numeral 13 in FIG. 2) forpivotally connecting the container portion 11 to the base portion 12.The connecting means 13 is described'in detail hereinbelow.

The bowl or container portion 11 comprises a concave, perferablyfrusto-spherical member having an open top. In a preferred embodiment,the open top of the container 11 terminates with a turned-in edge or lip14 which, as will become more apparent, reduces spillage of the contentsof the container during use. The container 11 may be formed of anysuitable material, such as plastic, metal or the like.

The base portion 12 may comprise a box-like configuration whose outerdimensions are dictated by little other than esthetic considerations.However, it is essential that the base portion comprise an opening orconcavity 15 adapted to receive the container portion 11. As illustratedmost clearly in FIG. 2, the contour of the concavity 15 preferablycorresponds to the'outer con.- figuration of the container portion 11.However, the only critical relationship between the configuration of theconcavity 15 and that of the container portion 11 is that the concavitybe larger than the container to permit the container to pivot -freelyrelative to the base portion 12. As is the case with the container, thebase portion may comprise any suitable material of construction.However, it is preferred that the base portion be comprised of rigidwall members 16, which define a cavity or space 17. It is also preferredthat the cavity 17 be filled with a weighting material, such as sand orwater to impart greater stability to the base portion 12. As shown inFIG. 1, the weighting material may be added to the cavity 17 through amouth located on the top 18 of the base portion 12. The mouth may beclosed, for example, with a threaded cap 19 to prevent inadvertent lossof the weighting material. If desired, the base portion may also beprovided with rubber or other non-skid leg members 20 to reduce thetendency of the feeding dish to move during use.

As best seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, the means 13 for pivotally connecting thecontainer portion 11 to the base portion 12 comprises a pair ofdiametrically opposed pins or pintles 22 rigidly connected to thecontainer. Each of the pintles 22 is preferably provided with a bushing23 rotatably mounted at or near the free end thereof. The connectingmeans 13 also comprises a pair of U-shaped clamping members 24 which arerigidly connected to the base portion 12. As illustrated best in FIG. 3,the legs 25, 26 and bottom 27 of each clamping member 24 defines agenerally vertical channel or slot 28 adapted to receive the bushing 23of one of the pintles 22.

In a preferred embodiment, the top portion 29, 30 of each leg 25, 26 isthreaded to receive an internally threaded tightening member 31, such asa hard rubber cap or nut. It will be appreciated, of course, that thethreaded portion of each leg 25, 26 is tapered slightly so that the legs25, 26 will be forced closer to each other with increased threadingengagement between the tightening member 31 and the legs 25, 26.Moreover, it will be appreciated that the normal width of the slot,i.e., the width of the slot prior to engaging the tightening member onthe legs 25, 26, is slightly larger than the diameter of the bushing 23(or the diameter of the pintle 22, in the event that dish 10 is to beused without the bushings) to permit vertical movement of the pintlesbetween the legs 25, 26 in the corresponding slots.

In this manner, the container portion 11 can be separated from the baseportion 112, for example, when it is desired to clean the containerportion 11, merely by removing the tightening member 31 and lifting thecontainer portion vertically upward until the pintles 22 clear the topportions of the legs 25, 26. Then, after the container portion has beencleaned, the dish 10 may be reassembled merely by reversing the aboveprocedure.

In this regard, even when the tightening member is engaged with the legs25, 26 so as to force the legs against the bushings 23 (or pintles 22)and thereby effect a predetermined restriction of the vertical movementthereof, a limited vertical movement of the bushings (or pintles) can beobtained by disposing a resilient stop member 32 between the bushing (orpintles) and the bottom 27 of the U-shaped clamps. The resilient stopmember 32, which may comprise a rubber disc, also provides a softlanding or cushion for the bushings (or pintles).

As will be appreciated from the foregoing description, the pivotalconnection between the container portion 11 and the base portion 12,will cause the container portion, under the influence of gravity, totend to remain in a generally horizontal orientation regardless of theorientation of the base portion.

While this invention has been described in particularity with referenceto the preferred form thereof, it will be readily understood by thoseskilled in the art that further modifications and changes may be madetherein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A pet feeding dish comprising,

a container portion having an open top;

a weighted base portion having a concavity adapted to receive saidcontainer portion, said concavity being larger than the outsidedimensions of said container portion; and

means pivotally connecting said container portion to said base portion,said container portion being disposed within said concavity, such that,under the influence of gravity, said container portion will undergopivotal movement relative to said base portion and thereby tend toassume a generally horizontal orientation.

2. The pet feeding dish of claim 1, wherein said pivotal connectingmeans comprises a pair of opposed pintles rigidly connected to andextending'from said container portion near said open top thereof, and apair cradle means mounted to said base portion pivotally supporting saidpintles.

3. The pet feeding dish of claim 2, wherein each of said cradle meanscomprises a generally U-shaped clamp member rigidly connected to saidbase portion, the legs and bottom of said U-shaped member defining avertically oriented slot for receiving one of said pintles.

4. The pet feeding dish of claim 3, wherein a resilient stop means isdisposed on the pintle supporting portion of each of said U-shapedmembers to provide a resilient contact between said pintles and saidpintle support portions.

5. The pet feeding dish of claim 3, further including bushing meansmounted at the free end of each pintle, bushing means being disposed ina corresponding vertically oriented slot.

6. The pet feeding dish of claim 5, wherein the top portion of each ofsaid legs of said U-shaped members is tapered and threaded, and furtherincluding tightening means having internal threads for threadablyengaging said legs, said tightening means causing the top portions ofsaid legs to move closer to each other upon threading engagement,thereby tightening said legs against said bushing means.

7. The pet feeding dish of claim 4, wherein said pintle is mountedwithin a bushing, said bushing, in turn, being disposed in saidvertically oriented slot.

8. The pet feeding dish of claim 7, wherein said base portion comprisesa rigid hollow member weighted with sand, and wherein each of saidtightening means comprises a threaded rubber cap.

9. The pet feeding dish of claim 8, wherein the open top of said bowlportion comprises a turned-in lip for reducing spillage of liquidscontained therein.

10. A pet feeding dish, which comprises:

a frusto-spherical bowl;

a rigid, hollow base member having a semi-spherical concavity forreceiving said bowl, said concavity being larger than said bowl;

a first pintle extending outwardly from said bowl and toward saidconcavity;

first bushing means rotatably mounted on said first pintle;

a first U-shaped member connected to said concavity, the legs and bottomof said first U-shaped member defining a slot for receiving andsupporting said first bushing means;

a second pintle extending outwardly from said bowl and toward saidconcavity, said second pintle being diametrically opposed to said firstpintle;

second bushing means rotatably mounted on said second pintle;

a second U-shaped member connected to said concavity, the legs andbottom of said second U- shaped member defining a slot for receiving andsupporting said second bushing means;

means for tightening the legs of said first U-shaped member against saidfirst bushing means; and

means for tightening the legs of said second U-shaped member againstsaid second bushing means, whereby under the influence of gravity, saidbowl will pivot about said pintles and tend to remain in a generallyhorizontal orientation.

11. The pet feeding dish of claim 10, wherein said base member isweighted with sand.

12. The pet feeding dish of claim 10, wherein the top portion of each ofsaid legs is threaded and tapered, and wherein each of said tighteningmembers comprises an internally threaded member adapted to threadablyengage the threaded legs of the respective U-shaped members.

13. The pet feeding dish of claim 12, wherein a flexible stop member isdisposed between the bushing means and the bushing supporting surface ofthe respective U-shaped members.

* i i t i

1. A pet feeding dish comprising, a container portion having an opentop; a weighted base portion having a concavity adapted to receive saidcontainer portion, said concavity being larger than the outsidedimensions of said container portion; and means pivotally connectingsaid container portion to said base portion, said container portionbeing disposed within said concavity, such that, under the influence ofgravity, said container portion will undergo pivotal movement relativeto said base portion and thereby tend to assume a generally horizontalorientation.
 2. The pet feeding dish of claim 1, wherein said pivotalconnecting means comprises a pair of opposed pintles rigidly connectedto and extending from said container portion near said open top thereof,and a pair cradle means mounted to said base portion pivotallysupporting said pintles.
 3. The pet feeding dish of claim 2, whereineach of said cradle means comprises a generally U-shaped clamp memberrigidly connected to said base portion, the legs and bottom of saidU-shaped member defining a vertically oriented slot for receiving one ofsaid pintles.
 4. The pet feeding dish of claim 3, wherein a resilientstop means is disposed on the pintle supporting portion of each of saidU-shaped members to provide a resilient contact between said pintles andsaid pintle support portions.
 5. The pet feeding dish of claim 3,further including bushing means mounted at the free end of each pintle,bushing means being disposed in a corresponding vertically orientedslot.
 6. The pet feeding dish of claim 5, wherein the top portion ofeach of said legs of said U-shaped members is tapered and threaded, andfurther including tightening means having internal threads forthreadably engaging said legs, said tightening means causing the topportions of said legs to move closer to each other upon threadingengagement, thereby tightening said legs against said bushing means. 7.The pet feeding dish of claim 4, wherein said pintle is mounted within abushing, said bushing, in turn, being disposed in said verticallyoriented slot.
 8. The pet feeding dish of claim 7, wherein said baseportion comprises a rigid hollow member weighted with sand, and whereineach of said tightening means comprises a threaded rubber cap.
 9. Thepet feeding dish of claim 8, wherein the open top of said bowl portioncomprises a turned-in lip for reducing spillage of liquids containedtherein.
 10. A pet feeding dish, which comprises: a frusto-sphericalbowl; a rigid, hollow base member having a semi-spherical concavity forreceiving said bowl, said concavity being larger than said bowl; a firstpintle extending outwardly from said bowl and toward said concavity;first bushing means rotatably mounted on said first pintle; a firstU-shaped member connected to said concavity, the legs and bottom of saidfirst U-shaped member defining a slot for receiving and supporting saidfirst bushing means; a second pintle extending outwardly from said bowland toward said concavity, said second pintle being diametricallyopposed to said first pintle; second bushing means rotatably mounted onsaid second pintle; a second U-shaped member connected to saidconcavity, the legs and bottom of said second U-shaped member defining asLot for receiving and supporting said second bushing means; means fortightening the legs of said first U-shaped member against said firstbushing means; and means for tightening the legs of said second U-shapedmember against said second bushing means, whereby under the influence ofgravity, said bowl will pivot about said pintles and tend to remain in agenerally horizontal orientation.
 11. The pet feeding dish of claim 10,wherein said base member is weighted with sand.
 12. The pet feeding dishof claim 10, wherein the top portion of each of said legs is threadedand tapered, and wherein each of said tightening members comprises aninternally threaded member adapted to threadably engage the threadedlegs of the respective U-shaped members.
 13. The pet feeding dish ofclaim 12, wherein a flexible stop member is disposed between the bushingmeans and the bushing supporting surface of the respective U-shapedmembers.